Topline:
Celebrities are launching more and consumer brands in which they are an equity stakeholder and not just a paid endorser in an effort to monetize their popularity.
Why it matters: Entertainers have seen revenue streams such as large, back-end payments and syndication deals dry up. Similarly, agents have been on the lookout for new high-margin revenue streams since packaging (pitching a number of clients for a single project as a “package” and taking a fee from the studio) was deemed illegal. If a consumer product is successful, it can generate an eight- or nine-figure payday. As one executive says, “It seems like equity is the new packaging.”
Meet the celebpreneurs: The recent success of George Clooney with Casamigos tequila and Ryan Reynolds (Aviation Gin) has inspired the current wave of entrepreneurial stars. Some of the most notable include Jennifer Aniston, Issa Rae, Dwayne Johnson, and Robert Downey Jr. The most popular categories are alcohol and personal care, but agents advise clients to pick products for which they have a personal connection.
Talent agency turned brand incubator: Every major agency in Hollywood — CAA, WME, and UTA — now has celebrity ventures divisions and have been staffing up those departments. WME parent Endeavor, which is still publicly traded, revealed in its 2023 annual report that it did 15 of these deals last year.
Is this a bubble? Between the bankruptcy filing last year of Hello Bello, the baby care brand cofounded by Kristen Bell and Dax Shepard, and the continuing pace of announcements of new celebrity-backed packaged goods, there is concern that a shakeout is forthcoming, with experts believing that 2024 will be a seminal one for this cohort of upstart products.
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This story is published in partnership with The Ankler, a paid subscription publication about the entertainment industry.
